Charlie Daniels’ loved ones remember the late country music icon: ‘We didn’t see his passing coming’

This year's Volunteer Jam served as a tribute for the country music star and celebrated fiddler.

"We were shocked," Daniels’ manager David Corlew told People magazine on Thursday. "Some of us are still in shock. None of us really believe that we’re going to live forever. But because of Charlie’s energy level and his attitude towards work, we didn’t see his passing coming. We were just waiting out the COVID. If Charlie was still with us, we’d have 300 dates on the books. Of all the parts of his career, entertaining people is what he loved the most." According to the outlet, Corlew was planning the 2020 Volunteer Jam before the coronavirus pandemic impacted the globe. At the time, Daniels was eager to headline the show set for Sept. 15, 2020, in Nashville, "a job he enjoyed for decades." The star called the Nashville area home since 1967.